Throughout its history, heavy metal has done well to avoid pretense. Bands sung about topics like slaying dragons, chasing women, and partying. Then, at some point during the 1990s, the cancer of nu metal started to metastasize in the heavy metal genre. Bands started singing about relationships and their feelings in an effort to gain mainstream popularity. Were not talking about an obligatory power ballad here and there"some bands sung about nothing else than how miserable they were and how sad they were over a failed relationship.
Fortunately, the cancerous tumor in the body of heavy metal is now in remission and the tide is turning back. Part of the cure has blown across the Norse sea like a cold winter monsoon and has now reached American shores. Amon Amarth is a band from Tumba, Sweden founded in 1992 who are the latest"and most commercially successful"proponent of a genre known as Viking metal. As the name implies, bands from the Viking metal genre sing about important topics such as sailing, lusting for adventure and conquest, furious winds and treacherous seas. Viking metal bands are too busy metaphorically conquering and pillaging to worry about such trivialities as their feelings, let alone grooming themselves.
Amon Amarth took their name from a location in J.R.R. Tolkiens Middle Earth, and their name means Mount Doom in the Elvish language of Sindarin. Mount Doom would have been a decent name in itself, but its roots in Tolkiens sword and sorcery classic makes it all the better. Their first demo release, The Arrival of the Fimbul Winter, set the thematic tone for their work to come. Drawing musical inspiration from bands such as Bolt Thrower and their Viking metal predecessors Bathory and Enslaved, who in turn took their cue from the great American band Manowar, Amon Amarth plays their own unique style of melodic death metal. While they are hesitant to claim the Viking metal mantle for their own, they take most of their lyrical content from Viking history and Norse mythology.
The band signed with Metal Blade Records in 1998 and their popularity has skyrocketed worldwide. 2006s With Oden On Our Side earned the band headliner status in North American and has made them one of the most popular metal acts in the US.
Amon Amarth recently extended their deal with Metal Blade records and released their latest album in September 2008 called 'Twilight of the Thunder God'. In a very metal marketing move, the band promoted the release of their new CD with an 8 page comic book in magazines all across Europe based on Norse mythology.
Heavy metal is gaining strength and resuming its powerful greatness under the marauding sound of Amon Amarth. The band tours constantly, and their powerful live show has earned them a reputation as one of the 'must see' concert acts. In 2006, they released a DVD entitled 'Wrath of the Norsemen' that brings their live experience to home TV screens.
Fortunately, the cancerous tumor in the body of heavy metal is now in remission and the tide is turning back. Part of the cure has blown across the Norse sea like a cold winter monsoon and has now reached American shores. Amon Amarth is a band from Tumba, Sweden founded in 1992 who are the latest"and most commercially successful"proponent of a genre known as Viking metal. As the name implies, bands from the Viking metal genre sing about important topics such as sailing, lusting for adventure and conquest, furious winds and treacherous seas. Viking metal bands are too busy metaphorically conquering and pillaging to worry about such trivialities as their feelings, let alone grooming themselves.
Amon Amarth took their name from a location in J.R.R. Tolkiens Middle Earth, and their name means Mount Doom in the Elvish language of Sindarin. Mount Doom would have been a decent name in itself, but its roots in Tolkiens sword and sorcery classic makes it all the better. Their first demo release, The Arrival of the Fimbul Winter, set the thematic tone for their work to come. Drawing musical inspiration from bands such as Bolt Thrower and their Viking metal predecessors Bathory and Enslaved, who in turn took their cue from the great American band Manowar, Amon Amarth plays their own unique style of melodic death metal. While they are hesitant to claim the Viking metal mantle for their own, they take most of their lyrical content from Viking history and Norse mythology.
The band signed with Metal Blade Records in 1998 and their popularity has skyrocketed worldwide. 2006s With Oden On Our Side earned the band headliner status in North American and has made them one of the most popular metal acts in the US.
Amon Amarth recently extended their deal with Metal Blade records and released their latest album in September 2008 called 'Twilight of the Thunder God'. In a very metal marketing move, the band promoted the release of their new CD with an 8 page comic book in magazines all across Europe based on Norse mythology.
Heavy metal is gaining strength and resuming its powerful greatness under the marauding sound of Amon Amarth. The band tours constantly, and their powerful live show has earned them a reputation as one of the 'must see' concert acts. In 2006, they released a DVD entitled 'Wrath of the Norsemen' that brings their live experience to home TV screens.
About the Author:
David Glisan is staff music reviewer for The Savage Science, a website covering both MMA news and heavy metal music. He's an avid MMA and boxing enthusiast as well, and reportsUFC news for several mainstream sports broadcasts and websites. He's practiced several martial arts forms since childhood and holds a black belt in judo.
